"Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all."
- Dale Carnegie

Friday, September 18, 2015

"Dragon Ball Z, Vol. 2: The Lord of the Worlds" by Akira Toriyama

Rating: ★★★★★

Previously on Dragon Ball Z

(I) Goku got married to Chichi and has a son named Gohan.

(II) Goku has an evil brother named Raditz who came seeking his help to murder innocents on another planet for profit and steals Gohan as blackmail.

(III) Goku teams up with Piccolo to kill Raditz and in the process Goku gets killed in order for Raditz to die. Now Raditz brothers are coming to earth in about a year from now and when they do all hell will break loose.

This is what you missed last time on Dragon Ball Z!

In this volume you learn that Goku is with God in the underworld hoping to see if Goku can meet Kaio-sama who can train him in preparations for the arrival of Nappa and Vegeta. Goku gets the official okay to visit him and he needs to cross the serpents path which only one person has successful made it to the end since it takes years to reach the destination. Goku doesn't have time to waste so he immediately starts running and flying hoping to reach Kaio-sama in time.

Back on Earth, the whole gang is trying to figure out what to do next and immediately Piccolo picks up Gohan and tells them that he will train Gohan and if you try to get in his way he will kill them. Even though Piccolo acts tough, something in him has changed and I hope in the series we get a closer insight as to why and my bet is Goku. Goku could have killed him when he had the chance and instead he tried Piccolo as a friend and as an equal. I think that idea of selflessness impressed Goku and kind of a reminder that he owes Goku his life. Plus the idea that he may die in a year or so may stir feelings that he has ignored for a long time.

When looking back I have to admit that Gohan and Piccolo is a perfect match because out of all of them, Piccolo is the strongest and the most dedicated when it comes to training and fighting making him the perfect master to teach. Gohan is one of the last options to save our planet and Piccolo needs all the help he can get while they try to resurrect Goku. The rest of the gang also gets to train with God hoping it can make them stronger fighters while they can be a distraction as they wait for Goku's return.

After about 200 days or so, Goku finally arrives at Kaio-Sama's small planet and immediately begins training which isn't easy since the planet gravity is 10x stronger than Earth making it harder for Goku to run and up. But over the course of 150 days he becomes a new warrior and Gohan also becomes more like his father being able to adapt himself to the wilderness while he trains with Piccolo.

The Saiyans arrive earlier than expected and all the powerful fighters gather together to put an end to Vegeta and Nappa. Along with them they bring these vulgar alien creatures to cause some damage and each fighter takes turns killing through. Through these actions we get to witness how powerful the good guys have become but also how Vegeta is able to destroy a creature with a swift move of his hand. By the end Kuririn is able to kill all the monsters and Nappa realizes a dose of his powers.

While all this is going on, Goku needs to running all the way back to the beginning of the Serpent Road in order to come home and help save the earth. Will Goku arrive on time before its too late? Stay tuned until next time on Dragon Ball Z!